Perfect Likeness
by Infamousplot
Summary: Alfie had known Jerome for years. He knew Jerome was deceitful, a liar by nature, but now... Now, it was like he didn't even know him. He stood there with his same blond hair, same sharp eyes -the perfect likeness of Jerome. But Jerome he was not.


**Hello everyone! It's me again ;D I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed my last HoA fic, "Bambi" You all rock ^_^ para request from LittleQuestie, I've churned out another Alfie and Jerome fic. I just love their little bromance thing. But I've seen the tension in their friendship lately, and so that's what this fic is based on. Takes place during "House of Lights, House of Allegiance" when Alfie finds out Jerome is helping Rufus. Enjoy everyone!**

Alfie lifted his pen from the last piece of paper, grinning despite himself. Each scrap of notebook paper was decorated with -dare he say it -a perfect likeness of the relics they'd been collecting. If it weren't for the lump of pure guilt he had sitting in his gut, he would have felt much more proud over his little master pieces.

"Not bad, Alfie Van Gogh." Alfie looked up, smiling meekly at his friend. Jerome grinned, swiping the papers and studying them. As he paced the room, shuffling through the sketches, Alfie sat and let the guilt stew in his stomach.

He couldn't believe he was doing this. And right after his pledge to uphold Sibuna's secrets, too! Alfie sighed, rubbing his temples and wondering if it was possible to feel any lower.

_It's fine, isn't it? You're just helping a friend,_ his conscience assured him silently. _Your best friend,_ it reminded him. _But... If he's such a good friend, then why is he forcing you to do this?_ Another voice, quieter and more sly, asked, and immediately the two set to warring with each other. Alfie groaned inwardly, trying to refocus his attention to the situation at hand. He'd just handed over information -key, Sibuna information -to Jerome. He loved Jerome, Jerome was his best friend, but he knew better than anyone that Jerome was the last person on earth you'd want to trust. Especially with stuff like this.

Jerome grinned down at Alfie's drawings, his face relaxing as relief flooded its features.

"This is perfect. Just what I need to show Rufus." Jerome was so engrossed with his relief that he didn't seem to realize his slip-up. But Alfie noticed.

"Rufus..." The name clicked in mind, and Alfie felt a surge of fear zing through his mind. "Rufus Zeno?" Jerome stopped pacing, his shoulders tensing slightly. He glanced toward Alfie with a wary look in his eyes, knowing he'd been caught. Alfie jolted to his feet, glaring murder at his friend. He couldn't believe this -yet a small part of him whispered that it was only inevitable.

"Jerome! That man -He's a complete psycho!" The boy cried, hands balled into fists at his sides. He struggled to keep his voice down -the last thing he needed was the others coming in and finding out he'd snitched on them, to Jerome of all people. "He _kidnapped_ Patricia!" His voice rose considerably on this note, high with either panic or just plain rage. Jerome snorted in disbelief, causing Alfie to glare.

"Please. I think we'd have noticed if Patricia had been kidnapped. The house would at least be a lot quieter." He smirked at his own humor as Alfie struggled to keep his temper in check, not finding Jerome's "humor" very amusing. He didn't want to believe that this was happening.

Alfie wasn't stupid -though there were others who would have loved to argue that point -and he wasn't blind. He'd noticed that, lately, things had started to fall apart between him and Jerome. Ever since that dreaded night he'd spent in the cellar -thanks to his "buddy" -things had been... Strained. The play had come up, Joy had resurfaced, and their lives had been full of enough things to keep them plenty occupied, but then... Then the dreams had started coming. The nightmares that he couldn't speak of. The horrors that plagued his sleep, things that, for some reason, he just couldn't word to Jerome. Then Jerome had, for some reason, set his sights on Mara, and things had become even more distant between them. Sibuna, it seemed, was the last stick on the raft, and now Alfie felt as though he'd set sail down some river, and was floating farther and farther away from his friend.

He stared at Jerome as though seeing him for the first time. Who was this boy? This blond-haired young man with fearful eyes who was trying to command him like a puppet? Alfie had known Jerome for years. He knew Jerome was deceitful, a liar by nature and a con-man by talent, the perfect swindler. Who else could have come up with a "Used Homework" trade in the halls before first block? How would anyone else have thought to make a fake audition to cheapen the lower years out of their money? Jerome was an evil genius -a title he'd worn like a medal -and Alfie had always respected that, but now... Now something was different. This shaken young man was not the prankster Jerome Clark he'd met all those years ago. He was like a clone, an doppel-ganger.

What was that saying again? "If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, then it must be a duck?" Well, here he had the perfect likeness of Jerome standing before him -same blond hair, same quick eyes, same smooth voice, but Alfie was sure that this Jerome was not the Jerome he knew. Now, it was like he didn't even know him.

Jerome had always used his powers to benefit the two of them. They were partners in crime, the three musketeers minus one. Sure, Jerome had played a foul here and there -he still hadn't managed to sort out that whole fake-fling with Amber that Jerome had tried to set up -but in the end he was always on his side. So why not this time?

"Alfie, please." Jerome's voice bordered desperate, his eyes wavered slightly. He was afraid, an emotion that rarely traced his smug face. "I don't have a choice. He's given me money." Alfie scowled, a dark anger rising up as far as his throat. Jerome had sold them out. He'd sold _him_ out. He was sure it hadn't been intentional, but irrationality won out, and he felt the sting of betrayal lash his face.

"Just give it back!" He snapped, snatching the papers away from Jerome's hands. His fingers grasped the air where they'd just been, despair flooding his eyes.

"I can't." He murmured, voice strained. "I spent it all. On stuff like your new headgear." Jerome's voice came out soft, almost a whisper, and suddenly, it became clear to Alfie how terrified he really was. Jerome had done what he did best -gone to far and spun off the road. He'd screwed up, and in an ironic switch of roles, he was coming to Alfie for help with the fixing. But this time Alfie was in just as deep as he was, and the consequences were far worse than toilet-scrubbing duty. This time, neither Alfie nor Jerome had any idea what to do.

Alfie picked up the pale-blue visor in his hands, fingering the soft texture as he tried to work out the knots of anger, guilt and fear that lay tangled in his mind. He could feel Jerome's eyes on him, begging and pleading in silence, but he didn't know what to say to them.

"You're in some serious trouble this time, man." He muttered, glancing up at his friend with sorrow in his eyes. _You and me both,_ he added mentally, his hands clenching around the visor.

_And if you don't know how to get out of this... Then what am I supposed to do?_

**There you go! For once, Jerome needs Alfie to bail him out, but there's not much either of them can do... Kya! I can't wait for the finale! I've refused to look HoA up because I don't want any spoilers, so I don't know if the finale is the end of the series or just the season... Well, please drop a review and tell me what you thought ^_^**

**~Ip**


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